


1: Holding Hands

by Eyvaera



Series: The Very Slow 30 Day OTP Challenge 2015 [1]
Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: 30 Day OTP Challenge, ConfedUK, Confred, Drabble, M/M, SweeTea, SweetTea
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-05
Updated: 2015-02-05
Packaged: 2018-03-10 16:38:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 424
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3297239
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Eyvaera/pseuds/Eyvaera
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>30 Day OTP Challenge.<br/>Prompt 1: Holding Hands.</p>
<p>Contains CSA/UK. Established relationship.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1: Holding Hands

**Author's Note:**

> Please note: This Confederate States of America is visually the same as the usual Alfred, minus Nantucket.
> 
> Set in modern times.
> 
> Edit: After responding to a comment, I feel I should say that I chose SweetTea (as I like to call the pairing), and thus the inclusion of South, primarily because I adore it. There is a lack of it, and of course when I was thinking up OTPs for this challenge, SweetTea leapt to mind. I wish to start contributing to this pairing, whether in small domestic pieces like this, or longer and more developed fics.  
> Perhaps in the process, and with other works, I may coax another to care for it as I do, or provide reading for any others who already share it.

* * *

                It was the soft rustle of fabric beside him that first drew Arthur out of the world conjured up by his book. Despite the captivating narrative, his companion's presence was not one he could easily ignore. A small turn of his head rewarded him with the familiar sight of Alfred, dressed neatly in a buttoned shirt and waistcoat, settling himself down beside him on the sofa with a book of his own. These shared reading sessions had become an almost habitual occurrence, with barely a word needing to be said between them, for the silence was as comforting as sharing each other's presence. Their eyes briefly meet, and he is rewarded with an upturn of Alfred's mouth that mirrors his own, before his partner's book is opened and his own gaze returns to the story of his.

                They sit like this for a while longer, the only sounds in the room a compilation of fingers against paper, the mantleplace clock ticking and their quiet breathing. Arthur's page-turning soon increases in frequency as the plot thickens, the suspense high in the printed words upon each smooth page. Idly, his spare hand fusses with a loose strand of his jumper, plucking away at the offending article for want of a way to express his mental connection with the throes of the book. It is only after he's succeeded in worsening the problem that he feels the warmth of fingers against his own. His eyes break from the page.

                Alfred's fingers trace over the back of Arthur's hand, less of their usual admonishment for this reoccurring habit, and more a soft, distracting caress. His eyes follow these movements, small shivers creeping up his arm as the soft hairs on the back of his hand are brushed. Glancing up, and Alfred seems entirely engrossed in his book, acting as if his fingers are moving on their own accord. When Arthur turns his palm upwards, Alfred's hand easily rests upon it, entwining their fingers together in such a well-versed manner that Arthur can't help but smile at the simple familiarity.

                Arthur has not always been vocal in asking for affection -- and Alfred is perhaps less so -- but he enjoys it, nonetheless. The soft weight of Alfred's hand in his, an unspoken affection that reminds Arthur of what he means to him, is something he finds reassuring and treasures both. Shifting his gaze back to his book, he allows the small movements of his thumb to remind himself of who he has to look forward to after this chapter ends.


End file.
